AB 1255

Bill Subjects

Abstract

Existing law requires the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection to establish a local assistance grant program for fire prevention activities. Existing law defines "fire prevention activities" for these purposes to mean those lawful activities that reduce the risk of wildfire in California, as provided. Existing law allows the department to consider whether a proposed project is complementary to other fire prevention or forest health activities when awarding local assistance grants. Existing law authorizes counties, by an ordinance from the board of supervisors and a contract with the department, to assume responsibility for the prevention and suppression of fires on land in the county, including lands within state responsibility areas, as specified. Existing law, until January 1, 2024, allows the Director of Forestry and Fire Protection to authorize advance payments, as specified, from grants. This bill would require the Natural Resources Agency, on or before July 1, 2023, and in collaboration with specified state agencies and in consultation with certain other state agencies, to develop a guidance document that describes goals, approaches, opportunities, and best practices in each region of the state for ecologically appropriate, habitat-specific fire risk reduction. The bill would require the guidance document to be developed through a public process, including region-specific public workshops hosted by the agency, and would require the agency to post the document on its internet website. The bill would require state entities to incorporate guidance from the document into their funding programs and would require the department to implement the guidance document by establishing interagency agreements. The bill would prohibit funding for programs described in the guidance document approved by the state before July 1, 2022, from being delayed or contingent upon the development of the guidance document. This bill would require the department, as part of the local assistance grant program, to consider input from a county regarding priority fire prevention activities within the county. The bill would also require the department to ensure that the local fire prevention priorities of a contract county, as described above, are considered before awarding a local assistance grant to support the fire prevention responsibilities the contract county has assumed from the state. The bill would allow the director to authorize advance payments from grants, as specified, indefinitely.